Attract and deter: a dual role for pyrrolizidine alkaloids in plant–insect interactions

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) are the major defense compounds of plants in the Senecio genus. Here I will review the effects of PAs in Senecio on the preference and performance of specialist and generalist insect herbivores. Specialist herbivores have evolved adaptation to PAs in their host plant. They can use the alkaloids as cue to find their host plant and often they sequester PAs for their own defense against predators. Generalists, on the other hand, can be deterred by PAs. PAs can also affect survival of generalist herbivores. Usually generalist insects avoid feeding on young Senecio leaves, which contain a high concentration of alkaloids. Structurally related PAs can differ in their effects on insect herbivores, some are more toxic than others. The differences in effects of PAs on specialist and generalists could lead to opposing selection on PAs, which may maintain the genetic diversity in PA concentration and composition in Senecio species.     

General esterases of Bemisia tabaci (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) change in response to feed on cotton varieties

The esterase enzymes are a major component of insect detoxification systems and play a crucial role in hydrolyzing lots of xenobiotic compounds. Among insect, generalist herbivores can exhibit developed biochemical defences as a result of exposing to a wide range of plant chemical compounds. To overcome this ability, host plants may affect the level of hydrolases in herbivore insects feeding on. To examine this hypothesis, in the present study total esterase activity was investigated in a highly polyphagous whitefly, Bemisia tabaci, reared on six different varieties of cotton, Gossypium hirsutum. Results showed significant differences in esterase activity of B. tabaci feeding on the host plant varieties. The highest esterase activities were detected in whiteflies feeding on Sk-Tb and Siokra varieties, whereas those whiteflies that feed on Hopicala variety exhibited the least esterase activities. Our findings highlight the important role of host plants in detoxification ability of herbivore insects. The importance of these findings in biology of insect pests and their applications in integrated pest management programmes of B. tabaci have been discussed in detail.     

Role of superoxide dismutase in the protection and tolerance to the prooxidant allelochemical quercetin in Papilio polyxenes,Spodoptera eridania,and Trichoplusia ni

Larvae of the black swallowtail butterfly, Papilio polyxenes, the southern armyworm, Spodoptera eridania, and the cabbage looper, Trichoplusia ni, have different feeding habits and dietary breadth, which contributes to differences in their exposure and tolerance to dietary prooxidant allelochemicals. The antioxidant enzyme activities of larvae of these insects have been previously determined, with the levels being P. polyxenes > S. eridania > T. ni. The relative activities of these antioxidant enzymes are consistent with the relative exposure of these insects to prooxidants. This suggests that the antioxidant enzymes may play a role in the defense against allelochemical toxicity in these insects. Dietary diethlydithiocarbamate (DETC), a copper chelating agent and superoxide dismutase (SOD) inhibitor, was shown to inhibit SOD in all three insects. Toxicological studies were conducted using four diets for each insect. The standard diets for each insect were supplemented with either control (solvent), quercetin (a prooxidant), DETC, or DETC plus quercetin. Nontoxic doses of each compound for each insect were used. Inhibition of SOD in P. polyxenes and S. eridania dramatically increased quercetin-induced toxicity as measured by relative growth and consumption rates in these species. DETC had no effect on quercetin toxicity in T. ni. These results elucidate the important role of SOD in the prooxidant allelochemical defense of insects.     

Insect herbivory and plant defense on ginkgoalean and bennettitalean leaves of the Middle Jurassic Daohugou Flora from Northeast China and their paleoclimatic implications

Interactions between terrestrial arthropods and plants play a significant role in terrestrial ecosystems. Research on plant–insect interactions through geologic time provides valuable information for studying insect behavior and plant structure, understanding their coevolution, as well as analyzing climate change. In this paper, we choose fossil ginkgoalean and bennettitalean leaves as the plant hosts to study insect herbivory in the Middle Jurassic Daohugou area. Seven damage types of four functional feeding groups have been identified. Of the four functional feeding groups, margin feeding is the most common, indicating an abundance of insects with chewing mouthparts. Ginkgoalean leaves, probably because of their chemical defense, suffered less severe insect damage than bennettitalean leaves. Physical defense has also been observed in various genera of the bennettitalean leaves. Significantly, leaves of Anomozamites had a shaggy indumentum on the abaxial leaf surface and long stiff hairs along the rachis protecting them from insect herbivory. Our results indicate that the climate in the Middle Jurassic of the Daohugou area was relatively warm and humid. This work contributes to the study of plant–insect coevolution in the Daohugou Biota and provides more proxy data for understanding the Middle Jurassic paleoclimate and paleoenvironment in Daohugou area.     

Plants use identical inhibitors to protect their cell wall pectin against microbes and insects

As fundamentally different as phytopathogenic microbes and herbivorous insects are, they enjoy plant‐based diets. Hence, they encounter similar challenges to acquire nutrients. Both microbes and beetles possess polygalacturonases (PGs) that hydrolyze the plant cell wall polysaccharide pectin. Countering these threats, plant proteins inhibit PGs of microbes, thereby lowering their infection rate. Whether PG‐inhibiting proteins (PGIPs) play a role in defense against herbivorous beetles is unknown. To investigate the significance of PGIPs in insect–plant interactions, feeding assays with the leaf beetle Phaedon cochleariae on Arabidopsis thaliana pgip mutants were performed. Fitness was increased when larvae were fed on mutant plants compared to wild‐type plants. Moreover, PG activity was higher, although PG genes were downregulated in larvae fed on PGIP‐deficient plants, strongly suggesting that PGIPs impair PG activity. As low PG activity resulted in delayed larval growth, our data provide the first in vivo correlative evidence that PGIPs act as defense against insects.     

Genetic variation in expression of defense phenotype may mediate evolutionary adaptation of Asclepias syriaca to elevated CO2

How species interactions may modify the effects of environmental change on evolutionary adaptation is poorly understood. Elevated CO₂ is known to alter plant–herbivore interactions, but the evolutionary consequences for plant populations have received little attention. We conducted an experiment to determine the effects of elevated CO₂ and herbivory by a specialist insect herbivore (Danaus plexippus) on the expression of constitutive and induced plant defense traits in five genotypes of Asclepias syriaca, and assessed the heritability of these traits. We also examined changes in relative fitness among plant genotypes in response to altered CO₂ and herbivory. The expression of plant defense traits varied significantly among genotypes. Elevated CO₂ increased plant growth and physical defenses (toughness and latex), but decreased investment in chemical defenses (cardenolides). We found no effect of elevated CO₂ on plant induction of cardenolides in response to caterpillar herbivory. Elevated CO₂ decreased the expression of chemical defenses (cardenolides) to a different extent depending on plant genotype. Differential effects of CO₂ on plant defense expression, rather than direct effects on relative fitness, may alter A. syriaca adaptation to changing climate.     

Ecological and Evolutionary Interactions between Wild Crucifers and Their Herbivorous Insects

Abstract Insects feeding on ten species of wild crucifer were investigated. Differences in host plant range and insect community structure were examined with regard to anti-herbivore defense mechanisms. Most of the crucifer species deterred insect herbivory by disappearing in the summer or by lowering their intrinsic quality as food for insects. Species with these defense mechanisms were exploited by only a few specialized herbivorous insects that seemed to have counter defenses. The plants without these defense mechanisms were used by many herbivorous insect species. Rorippa indica lacked direct defenses, but supported a low total density of herbivore individuals. This crucifer has an indirect defense mechanism: ants attracted to floral nectar defended the plant from deleterious herbivores. Crucifers that disappeared seasonally lacked other anti-herbivore defense mechanisms. This suggests that the phonological response is an alternative other responses to herbivore attack.     

Phytosterols and triterpenes from Morinda lucida Benth (Rubiaceae) as potential inhibitors of anti-apoptotic BCL-XL,BCL-2, and MCL-1: an in-silico study

Deregulation of the normal cellular apoptotic function is a fundamental element in the etiology of most cancers and the anti-apoptotic B cell lymphoma 2 (BCL?2) protein family is known to play crucial role in the regulation of this function. Overexpression of this protein family has been implicated in some cancers, such that agents that could inhibit their over-activity are now being explored for anticancer drug development. A number of studies have revealed the anticancer potential of Morinda lucida-derived extracts and compounds. In search of more inhibitors of this anti-apoptotic protein family from plant resources, 47 compounds, identified in Morinda lucida Benth (Rubiaceae) were screened for their inhibitory activities against BCL-XL, BCL-2, and MCL-1 by molecular docking using BINDSURF, while binding interactions of the top compounds were viewed with PyMOL. Druglikeness and Absorption–Distribution–Metabolism–Excretion (ADME) parameters of the top 6 compounds from docking study were evaluated using SuperPred webserver. Results revealed that out of the 47 compounds, 2 triterpenes (ursolic acid and oleanolic acid) and 4 phytosterols (cycloartenol, campesterol, stigmasterol, and β-sitosterol) have higher binding affinities for the selected BCL-2 proteins, compared to known standard inhibitors; these compounds also fulfill oral drugability of Lipinski rule of five. Therefore, since these Morinda lucida-derived phytosterols and triterpenes show high binding affinity toward the selected anti-apoptotic proteins and exhibited good drugability characteristics, they qualify for further study on drug development against cancers characterized by overexpression of this family of protein.     

A plant pathogen modulates the effects of secondary metabolites on the performance and immune function of an insect herbivore

Host plant chemical composition critically shapes the performance of insect herbivores feeding on them. Some insects have become specialized on plant secondary metabolites, and even use them to their own advantage such as defense against predators. However, infection by plant pathogens can seriously alter the interaction between herbivores and their host plants. We tested whether the effects of the plant secondary metabolites, iridoid glycosides (IGs), on the performance and immune response of an insect herbivore are modulated by a plant pathogen. We used the IG‐specialized Glanville fritillary butterfly Melitaea cinxia, its host plant Plantago lanceolata, and the naturally occurring plant pathogen, powdery mildew Podosphaera plantaginis, as model system. Pre‐diapause larvae were fed on P. lanceolata host plants selected to contain either high or low IGs, in the presence or absence of powdery mildew. Larval performance was measured by growth rate, survival until diapause, and by investment in immunity. We assessed immunity after a bacterial challenge in terms of phenoloxidase (PO) activity and the expression of seven pre‐selected insect immune genes (qPCR). We found that the beneficial effects of constitutive leaf IGs, that improved larval growth, were significantly reduced by mildew infection. Moreover, mildew presence downregulated one component of larval immune response (PO activity), suggesting a physiological cost of investment in immunity under suboptimal conditions. Yet, feeding on mildew‐infected leaves caused an upregulation of two immune genes, lysozyme and prophenoloxidase. Our findings indicate that a plant pathogen can significantly modulate the effects of secondary metabolites on the growth of an insect herbivore. Furthermore, we show that a plant pathogen can induce contrasting effects on insect immune function. We suspect that the activation of the immune system toward a plant pathogen infection may be maladaptive, but the actual infectivity on the larvae should be tested.     

Chemical defense and chemical variation in some tropical Pacific species of Halimeda (Halimedaceae; Chlorophyta)

Over a dozen species of the genus Halimeda have been chemically investigated and found to produce the diterpenoid metabolites halimedatrial (1) and halimedatetraacetate (2) in varying concentrations. These meabolites have been proposed to play a role in chemical defense against herbivores based on their chemical structures and their demonstrated biological activities in laboratory and aquarium assays. We examined and compared the feeding deterrent effects of these two compounds tovard herbivorous fishes in field experiments on Guam reefs. Halimedatrial is a more effective feeding deterrent than halimedatetraacetate. It is the major secondary metabolite in young Halimeda macroloba and in the newly produced segments of growing plants. The organic extracts from young plants and new segments were significantly more deterrent than extracts from mature plant tissue. Some populations of Halimeda growing in reef-slope habitats, where herbivory is intense, also have high concentrations of halimedatrial. We compared extracts between reef slope and reef flat collections of Halimeda opuntia on Guam and Pohnpei (= Ponape), and H. discoidea and H. macroloba on Guam. We found that halimedtrial was the major metabolite in reef-slope collections of H. opuntia from Pohnpei and Pago Bay, Guam, and that halimedatetraacetate was the major metabolite a non-reef slope populations. In the cases examined, chemical defenses were greatest in (1) plant parts and (2) populations that were at greatest risk to herbivores.     

Dual benefit from a belowground symbiosis: nitrogen fixing rhizobia promote growth and defense against a specialist herbivore in a cyanogenic plant

Legume-associated nitrogen-fixing bacteria play a key role for plant performance and productivity in natural and agricultural ecosystems. Although this plant-microbe mutualism has been known for decades, studies on effects of rhizobia colonisation on legume-herbivore interactions are scarce. We hypothesized that additional nitrogen provided by rhizobia may increase plant resistance by nitrogen-based defense mechanisms. We studied this below-aboveground interaction using a system consisting of lima bean (Phaseolus lunatus L.), rhizobia, and the Mexican bean beetle (Epilachna varivestis Muls.) as an insect herbivore. We showed that the rhizobial symbiosis not only promotes plant growth but also improves plant defense and resistance against herbivores. Results of our study lead to the suggestion that nitrogen provided by rhizobia is allocated to the production of nitrogen-containing cyanogenic defense compounds, and thereby crucially determines the outcome of plant-herbivore interactions. Our study supports the view that the fitness benefit of root symbioses includes defence mechanisms and thus extends beyond the promotion of plant growth. Since the associations between legumes and nitrogen-fixing rhizobia are ubiquitous in terrestrial ecosystems, improved knowledge on rhizobia-mediated effects on plant traits?Dand the resulting effects on higher trophic levels?Dis important for better understanding of the role of these microbes for ecosystem functioning.     

Associational effects and the maintenance of polymorphism in plant defense against herbivores: review and evidence

Many plant species have evolved defense traits against herbivores. Associational effects (AEs) refer to a kind of apparent interaction where the herbivory risk to a focal plant species depends on the composition of other plant species in a neighborhood. Despite ample evidence for AEs between different plant species, this point of view has rarely been applied to polymorphism in defense traits within a plant species. The purpose of this review is to highlight an overlooked role of conspecific AEs in maintaining polymorphism in antiherbivore defense. First, I present a general review of AE between plant species and its role in the coexistence of plant species. This viewpoint of AE can be applied to genetic polymorphism within a plant species, as it causes frequency‐ and density‐dependent herbivory between multiple plant types. Second, I introduce a case study of conspecific AEs in the trichome‐producing (hairy) and glabrous plants of Arabidopsis halleri subsp. gemmifera. Laboratory and semi‐field experiments illustrated that AEs against the brassica leaf beetle Phaedon brassicae mediate a minority advantage in defense and fitness between hairy and glabrous plants. Combined with a statistical modeling approach, field observation revealed that conspecific AEs can maintain the trichome dimorphism via negative frequency‐dependent selection in a plant population. Finally, I discuss spatial and temporal scales at which AEs contribute to shaping genetic variation in antiherbivore defense in a plant metapopulation. Based on the review and evidence, I suggest that AEs play a key role in the maintenance of genetic variation within a plant species.     

Top-down effects of insect herbivores during early succession: influence on biomass and plant dominance

We tested the hypothesis that phytophagous insects would have a strong top-down effect on early successional plant communities and would thus alter the course of succession. To test this hypothesis, we suppressed above-ground insects at regular intervals with a broad-spectrum insecticide through the first 3 years of old-field succession at three widely scattered locations in central New York State. Insect herbivory substantially reduced total plant biomass to a similar degree at all three sites by reducing the abundance of meadow goldenrod, Solidago altissima. As a result, Euthamia graminifolia dominated control plots whereas S. altissima dominated insecticide-treated plots by the third year of succession. S. altissima is the dominant old-field herbaceous species in this region but typically requires at least 5 years to become dominant. Past explanations for this delay have implicated colonization limitation whereas our data demonstrate that insect herbivory is a likely alternative explanation. A widespread, highly polyphagous insect, the xylem-tapping spittlebug, Philaenus spumarius, appeared to be the herbivore responsible for the reduction in standing crop biomass at all three sites. Insect herbivory typically caused little direct leaf tissue loss for the ten plant species we examined, including S. altissima. Consequently, the amount of leaf area removed was not a reliable indicator of the influence of insect herbivory on standing crop biomass or on early succession. Overall, we found a strong top-down effect of insect herbivores on biomass at several sites, so our results may be broadly applicable. These findings run counter to generalizations that top-down effects of herbivores, particularly insects, are weak in terrestrial systems. These generalizations may not apply to insects, such as spittlebugs, that can potentially mount an effective defense (i.e., spittle) against predators and subsequently reach relatively high abundance on common plant species. Our results suggest that insect herbivory may play an important but often overlooked role during early old-field succession. Received: 26 December 1998 / Accepted: 3 April 1999     

Plant traits shape soil legacy effects on individual plant–insect interactions

Plant-mediated soil legacy effects can be important determinants of the performance of plants and their aboveground insect herbivores, but, soil legacy effects on plant–insect interactions have been tested for only a limited number of host plant species and soils. Here, we tested the performance of a polyphagous aboveground herbivore, caterpillars of the cabbage moth Mamestra brassicae, on twelve host plant species that were grown on a set of soils conditioned by each of these twelve species. We tested how growth rate (fast- or slow-growing) and functional type (grass or forb) of the plant species that conditioned the soil and of the responding host plant species growing in those soils affect the response of insect herbivores to conditioned soils. Our results show that plants and insect herbivores had lower biomass in soils that were conditioned by fast-growing forbs than in soils conditioned by slow-growing forbs. In soils conditioned by grasses, growth rate of the conditioning plant had the opposite effect, i.e. plants and herbivores had higher biomass in soils conditioned by fast-growing grasses, than in soils conditioned by slow-growing grasses. We show that the response of aboveground insects to soil legacy effects is strongly positively correlated with the response of the host plant species, indicating that plant vigour may explain these relationships. We provide evidence that soil communities can play an important role in shaping plant–insect interactions aboveground. Our results further emphasize the important and interactive role of the conditioning and the response plant in mediating soil–plant–insect interactions.     

Chemistry and Biology of the Genus Flourensia (Asteraceae)

Flourensia species are dominant plants that are adapted to semidesertic and desertic regions. It is believed that they are successful plants because they employ several protection mechanisms, including the formation of a waxy film on their aerial parts to protect them from dehydration. This waxy film contains chemical compounds that are capable of inhibiting the growth of other plants and of acting as allelopathic and herbicidal agents and as germination inhibitors. These plants also limit herbivory, and they exhibit insecticidal, insect antifeedant, antibacterial, antifungal, antialgal, and antitermite activities. Sesquiterpenes, flavonoids, benzofurans, chromenes, coumarins, lupan triterpenes, aliphatic lactones, and aromatic and acetilenic compounds have all been isolated from the organic extracts of Flourensia species. Monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, and aliphatic hydrocarbons are the main constituents found in their essential oils. This review is an overview of the chemical constituents and of the biological activities of Flourensia species.     

Dietary plant phenolic improves survival of bacterial infection in Manduca sexta caterpillars

Plant phenolics are generally thought to play significant roles in plant defense against herbivores and pathogens. Many plant taxa, including Solanaceae, are rich in phenolic compounds and some insect herbivores have been shown to acquire phenolics from their hosts to use them as protection against their natural enemies. Here, we demonstrate that larvae of an insect specialist on Solanaceae, the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta L. (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae), acquire the plant phenolic chlorogenic acid (CA), and other caffeic acid derivatives as they feed on one of their hosts, Nicotiana attenuata L. (Solanaceae), and on artificial diet supplemented with CA. We test the hypothesis that larvae fed on CA‐supplemented diet would have better resistance against bacterial infection than larvae fed on a standard CA‐free diet by injecting bacteria into the hemocoel of fourth instars. Larvae fed CA‐supplemented diet show significantly higher survival of infection with Enterococcus faecalis (Andrewes & Horder) Schleifer & Kilpper‐Bälz, but not of infection with the more virulent Pseudomonas aeruginosa (Schroeter) Migula. Larvae fed on CA‐supplemented diet possess a constitutively higher number of circulating hemocytes than larvae fed on the standard diet, but we found no other evidence of increased immune system activity, nor were larvae fed on CA‐supplemented diet better able to suppress bacterial proliferation early in the infection. Thus, our data suggest an additional defensive function of CA to the direct toxic inhibition of pathogen proliferation in the gut.     

Plant-mediated effects in the Brassicaceae on the performance and behaviour of parasitoids

Direct and indirect plant defences are well studied, particularly in the Brassicaceae. Glucosinolates (GS) are secondary plant compounds characteristic in this plant family. They play an important role in defence against herbivores and pathogens. Insect herbivores that are specialists on brassicaceous plant species have evolved adaptations to excrete or detoxify GS. Other insect herbivores may even sequester GS and employ them as defence against their own antagonists, such as predators. Moreover, high levels of GS in the food plants of non-sequestering herbivores can negatively affect the growth and survival of their parasitoids. In addition to allelochemicals, plants produce volatile chemicals when damaged by herbivores. These herbivore induced plant volatiles (HIPV) have been demonstrated to play an important role in foraging behaviour of insect parasitoids. In addition, biosynthetic pathways involved in the production of HIPV are being unraveled using the model plant Arabidopsis thialiana. However, the majority of studies investigating the attractiveness of HIPV to parasitoids are based on experiments mainly using crop plant species in which defence traits may have changed through artificial selection. Field studies with both cultivated and wild crucifers, the latter in which defence traits are intact, are necessary to reveal the relative importance of direct and indirect plant defence strategies on parasitoid and plant fitness. Future research should also consider the potential conflict between direct and indirect plant defences when studying the evolution of plant defences against insect herbivory.     

Influence of plant quality on pine sawfly population dynamics

The contribution of plant quality to the population dynamics of herbivorous insects has been an issue of much controversy. Many studies have documented how variable plant quality differentially influences the survival and fecundity of insect individuals. Whether or not such effects can be translated to the level of insect populations is, however, not clear. In order to test this hypothesis one needs to combine processes at both the level of the individual and the population. This is difficult with an empirical approach, but could be achieved by means of modeling given that appropriate data exist for both levels of organization. In this paper we report on a model developed to analyze whether altered Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) quality can contribute to the build‐up of populations of the European pine sawfly (Neodiprion sertifer). Experimental data on responses of sawfly larvae to variable plant quality, i.e. needle concentrations of resin acids, were used to parameterize the model. Larval survival and sawfly fecundity are reduced at high resin acid concentrations. However, high resin acid concentrations are, at the same time, beneficial because larval defense against predators is enhanced. In the model, data on individual responses were combined with literature data at the population level; a type III functional response related to cocoon predation was presumed to be the density‐dependent process regulating sawfly populations. The analysis showed that the risk for an outbreak is high when needle resin acid concentration (r) or larval predation pressure (p) is low. When r or p is high there is no risk. By analyzing different scenarios it was found that small changes in r and p can result in the sawfly population moving from low to high outbreak risk. Changes of the same, or larger, magnitude in r have been observed in empirical studies. The role of tritrophic interactions was also considered. This was done by removing the positive effects of resin acids on larval performance in the model. It was found that the anti‐predator defense of N.sertifer makes it prone to outbreak under wider combinations of r and p than an insect without the defense. We conclude that small changes in a density‐independent factor, such as needle chemistry, can have significant effects on herbivore population dynamics because increased fecundity and survival caused by needle quality may allow the population to escape the control of density‐dependent factors, such as cocoon predation.     

Bacillus thuringiensis: a successful insecticide with new environmental features and tidings

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is known as the most successful microbial insecticide against different orders of insect pests in agriculture and medicine. Moreover, Bt toxin genes also have been efficiently used to enhance resistance to insect pests in genetically modified crops. In light of the scientific advantages of new molecular biology technologies, recently, some other new potentials of Bt have been explored. These new environmental features include the toxicity against nematodes, mites, and ticks, antagonistic effects against plant and animal pathogenic bacteria and fungi, plant growth-promoting activities (PGPR), bioremediation of different heavy metals and other pollutants, biosynthesis of metal nanoparticles, production of polyhydroxyalkanoate biopolymer, and anticancer activities (due to parasporins). This review comprehensively describes recent advances in the Bt whole-genome studies, the last updated known Bt toxins and their functions, and application of cry genes in plant genetic engineering. Moreover, the review thoroughly describes the new features of Bt which make it a suitable cell factory that might be used for production of different novel valuable bioproducts.

     

Ilex paraguariensis cell suspension culture characterization and response against ethanol

Cell suspension cultures of Ilex paraguariensis, a South American native tree known as the maté plant, were initiated in order to investigate plant defense. Cultures were characterized for their cell growth, chemical composition and sugar consumption. The present work quantified some effects of salicylic acid, methyl jasmonate, cellulase and ethanol on cell growth and sugar metabolism. Results suggest that salicylic acid and methyl jasmonate play a role in Ilex paraguariensis response against exogenous ethanol by enhancing its glucosylation by 50% if compared to addition of ethanol alone.